Preparing for Emerging Mobility: Autonomous Vehicles and Mobility Horizons

Autonomous vehicles, e-bikes, bike share, car share, mobility-as-a-service, and other emerging technologies are already reshaping how people move. But whether these tools reduce emissions, traffic, and car dependency depends on the urban environments they enter and the policies that guide them. This session will move beyond both hype and doom to ask how cities can use emerging mobility to support safer streets, reduce vehicle miles traveled, improve curb management, and incentivize climate-aligned transportation choices. Some of the questions we’ll be discussing: With all the competition for curb space, who wins? We already have taxis and Uber, why are AVs better if they’re going to take jobs away from drivers? How would a city need to change for AVs to improve mobility? What's in it for me if we’re trading street parking for endless circulation? This session is hosted by the NYU Rudin Center and the Parking Reform Network and is a part of the Urban Climate Solutions Track at NYC Climate Week 2026. View all events in the track at https://www.urbanclimatesolution.org/. NYU provides reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. Please submit your request for accommodations for events and services at least two weeks before the date of your accommodation need. Although we can't guarantee accommodation requests received less than two weeks before the event, you should still contact us and we will do our best to meet your accommodation need. Please email rudin.center@nyu.edu for assistance.